Chapter6: HowtoRunaCompanyRetreatforaRemoteTeam 53 Sofar,we’vehadcompanyretreatsinCalifornia,Washington,Florida,Colorado, Alabama,Utah,Texas,Vancouver,Toronto,andLouisiana—anddepartmental retreats in other locations. When choosing a place for your company retreat, there are a few things to consider: 1. Make it somewhere easy for folks to get to (that is, less than a two-hour drive from a major airport). 2. Go somewhere that can hold everyone. When we were a smaller team of under 30 people, we were able to do AirBnB and HomeAway houses (hotelscanfeelsterile,buthousesfeelinviting.)Aswe’vegrown,we’vehad tobroadenoursearchforplacesthatcouldaccommodatelargergroupsin onespotwhilealsostillprovidingthatsenseofprivacyandcloseness.Our PeopleOpsteamhasdoneagreatjobscoutinglocationsbasedonthese criteria and others, such as our need for a large conference room, fast and reliable Wi-Fi (at least 100mbps up and down), and breakout rooms to work on projects together. 3. Don’t worry so much about being close to tons of activities. We used to think having a large city nearby would be important but then realized we rarely took advantage of the full city amenities. 4. Thatsaid,dohavesomeactivitiesveryneartheretreatlocation.Beachside houses, resorts near hiking trails, or places with big games rooms (pool, ping pong, etc.) are great because people can entertain themselves in downtimewithoutdrivingplaces. Ultimately, though, go with what suits your company. I know some companies travel overseas or some bring everyone into headquarters.